Daily Log

64

65

July 8, 1981

Plan: p. 66

• Cassette Tiles = 3
• Boxes Pottery = 6

At the compeltion of yesterday's work, the entire trench was brought to a single level, with the exception of the protective baulk along the north side of the wall and the reaised step of yellow woil to the south.  We continue the levelling cut begun yesterday in Y 15-16: proceeding east this cut becomes deeper and will be called cut 4.  In Y-Z 16 the cut is shallow - 10 cm. - and is in firmly packed yellow-brown soil with rocks but below the root level now.  Immediately a small fall of tiles is uncorvered which corresponds to the concerntration of tiles and pottery found yesterday in Z-Y 15 to the northwest and at a slightly higher level.  In Y-Z 17-18 the soil is yellow-brown with stones, but somewhat softer.  In the NE corner of the trench (Y18) a patch of caorse gray borwn soil with many rocks which is similar to the stratum of rocky fill above in the scarp is uncovered.  Along the scarp, an area of large stones forming a packing or fill

66

Plan

67

is the continuation of the stones noted here before (see plan p. 60).  This stone fill has been cut into the surrounding harder yellow-brown soil.  There is relativelylittle pottery and tiles in Z - alpha 17-18.  Trowelling in Z-alpha 16 however shows that the tile fall spreads here and inlcudes some good quality pottery.  As we progress in alpha-beta 17-18 (a deeper 25 cm. cut here) the softer dark soil is still found along the scarp.  Immediately to the west the soil becomes denser and more yellow incolor as we move south.  There is still little pottery in this zone.

Beta-gamma 18: the zone of softer darker soil continues here along the scarp, creating a strip c. 50 cm. wide which become wider near the large stone left in situ in the SE corner.  In this corner several more stones are uncovered in the dark soil; this seems to be a pit: some fragments of a burned vessel (same as that noted on 7-6-81) are found in it.  To the west, the soil is yellow and clay-like, and contains no material.  We remove the raised

68

69

step of yellow soil, with the exception of a ramp for the wheelbarrow.  This appears to be virgin soil already, occurring approx. 40 cm. below the upper surface of the stone wall.  Further trowelling around the stones in the SE corner reveals a line of stones, large and small, running N-S perpendicular to the E-W wall.  The stones, possibly a wall, are located 60 cm. west of the eastern baulk, and 40-50 cm. below the upper surface of teh E-W wall.  Near the protective baulk left along the E-W wall, a piece of tile is visible among the stones of the small perpendicular "wall." To the E. of the N-S "wall", the soil is somewhat coarser and darker; to the west is the pale clay-like yellow earth with no material - possibly melted mud-brick? The N-S "wall" is a single course of unworked stones 20-30 cm. in width.

Before further defining the N-S "wall" to the north, we continue cut 4 west in grids alpha-beta 17-16.  The cut goes below the level of the tile fall which is in situ.  Outside of the tile fall, there is again little pottery or tiles, as in 17-18 Z-beta.

70

71

At the same time we take down the western section of the raised step, leaving only the wheelbarrow ramp.  Here the soil is not the clay-like yellow as previously thought, but a darker yellow-brown with stones, as well as pottery and tile frags.  This soil (gamma-beta 15) is distinct from the yellow immediately east, but the division between the two is hidden by the ramp.  Once the small step is removed we continue cut 4 here: the soil is relatively soft and dark yellow-brown with much material and bones - it contrasts with that found to the north in alpha 15 which is the firm yellow-brown found throughout most of the trench.  The tile fall is lifted: the soil surrounding it is darker than the surrounding area and is a continuation of the dark soil of the previous (45cm) cut - perhaps this areas is a depression, filled with tiles and pottery, in the present yellow brown layer.  There is a great deal of coarseware pottery here.

72

73

74

75

76